Psychic readings and fortunetelling are an ancient art—a

combination of acting and psychological manipulation.

MIchael Shermer prepares for his debut
as a “Psychic for a Day.”
While some psychics are known to cheat and acquire
information ahead of time, our ten tips will focus on what
is known as “cold reading”—reading someone "cold"
without any prior knowledge about them.
Our primary source for this information is Ian
Rowland's insightful and encyclopedicThe Full Facts Book
of Cold Reading (available at ianrowland.com). What we
describe here is only a small sampling from this com-
prehensive compendium by a professional cold reader who
is arguably one of the best in the world.
We have also included information from other articles
published by the Skeptics Society, most notably Michael
Shermer’s “Psychic for a Day: How I Learned Tarot Cards,
Palm Reading, Astrology, and Mediumship in 24
Hours” written after his appearance as a ersatz psychic on
Bill Nye’s adult oriented PBS science series Eye on Nye in
2003, and posted on our website (www.michaelshermer.
com/science-friction/excerpt/). In it, Shermer answers the
question, “Do you have to master the details of the
fortunetelling arts, or are they only window dressing for the
more down to earth techniques described in this booklet?”
With only 24 hours to master palm readings, tarot card
readings, astrological readings, and even talking to the
dead, Shermer had no problem convincing subjects
that he had never met that he was psychic. The fact
that he could perform reasonably well with only one day
of preparation shows just how vulnerable people are to
these very effective psychological manipulations.

Set the stage

1 for an intimate,
c o m f o r ta b l e ,
experience. Establish
your Psychic authority
with props such as
important looking
charts, or bookcases
full of reference
books.
Provide comfortable chairs with
a small table between them. A
lace table cloth, candles, a soft
rug with soft colored lighting
and incense will give your read-
ing a “spiritual” feeling. Your
client should feel they are the
center of an important ritual.
SKEPTIC.com
 Use a soft voice, a calm demeanor, and
Project a sympathetic personality.

2
Put your client in a receptive,
cooperative mood by Explaining that
a reading is a team effort.
sympathetic and non-confrontational body
language: a pleasant smile, constant eye contact,
with head tilted to one side while listening. Face
the subject with legs together (not crossed)
and arms unfolded. Call yourself a “Psychic
Intuitor.” Explain that your “clients” come to
see you about various things that might be weigh-
ing heavy on their hearts (the heart being the pre-
ferred organ of New Age spirituality), and that as an
intuitor it is your job to use your special gift of
intuition. Explain that everyone has this gift, but
that you have improved yours through practice. To
rationalize your soon to come misses, come right
out and say that psychics cannot predict the future
perfectly: “While it would be wonderful if I was a
hundred percent accurate, no one is perfect.
Even Michael Jordan missed lots of shots!”

start with the “Barnum”

3
There are seven things
people most want to
talk about: love, Health,
4 reading that offers
something for everyone:
Money, Career,
Education, & Ambition.
Travel,
! You can be a very considerate person, very
quick to provide for others, but there are times, if you
are honest, when you recognize a selfish streak in your-
self. I would say that on the whole you can be rather
quiet, self-effacing type, but when the circumstances
are right, you can be quite the life of the party if the
mood strikes you.

! Sometimes you are too honest about your feel-

ings and you reveal too much of yourself. You are good
at thinking things through and you like to see proof
before you change your mind about anything. When
you find yourself in a new situation you are very cautious
until you find out what’s going on, and then you begin
to act with confidence.

! What I get here is that you are someone who

Stick to these themes by
asking a lot of questions
and making plenty of
statements from each
category. This will also
help you remember where
you are in the reading.
art by John Coulter
can generally be trusted. Not a saint, not perfect, but
let’s just say that when it really matters this is someone
who does understand the importance of being trust-
worthy. You know how to be a good friend.
! You are able to discipline yourself so that
you seem in control to others, but actually you
sometimes feel somewhat insecure. You wish you
could be a little more popular and at ease in your
interpersonal relationships than you are now.
! You are wise in the ways of the world, a
wisdom gained through hard experience rather
than book learning.
SKEPTIC.com
 After general statements, you can begin to home in on specifics

5 that apply to most people by referencing such things as:

• Jewelry from a deceased family member

• Old medicine or medical supplies out of date
• Electronic gizmo or gadget
that no longer works
• Toys, books, mementoes from childhood • Out of date note on fridge
• A box of old photographs, most not in albums or near the phone
• Watch or clock that no longer works • Books about a hobby no longer pursued
• Keys that you can’t remember what they go to
• Drawer that is stuck or doesn’t slide properly

And peculiarities about the person:

• Childhood accident involving water
• Number 2 in the home address
• Scar on knee
• Wore hair long as a child, then shorter haircut
• Clothing never worn
• Photos of loved ones in purse
• A single earring that is missing a match

6 Extract information from your client

by dISGUISING questions as statements.

Does
this sound Is this mak-
So right? ing sense to
who might yo u ?
this refer
to ?
can
do
you see why
yo u
this might be the
connect
impression I m
with this?
getting?

OK? What
might this link
N ow to in your
why would life?
that be?

Yes?
Please?

H ow W ould
might this be you say this
significant to is along the
yo u ? right lines for
yo u ?

SKEPTIC.com
 appeal to the authority of ancient wisdom

7 and mysterious secrets by peppering

your reading with esoteric jargon.

Ian Rowland labels this technique “The Jargon Blitz” and says it is
one of his favorites. The use of arcane terms makes the reader’s pres-
entation impossible to follow logically, and reinforces the idea that the
reader is an authority figure with secret knowledge. Appealing to
ancient wisdom also promotes a sense of ritual that encourages coop-
eration and discourages any doubts or protests.
The reader can then pump the client for information under the
cover of revealing that “the cards” or “the stars” indicate a num-
ber of possibilities and then asking the client—who is distracted
by the jargon—which best fits their situation. Rowland shows how the
question is slipped in at the end in this example: “Interestingly enough,
I see we’ve got the ‘Five of Swords,’ an important card within the lesser
arcanum, traditionally associated with challenge and struggle in affairs
of the heart. What’s intriguing is that in the same conjunction of the
spread we’ve already had ‘The Hermit,’ originally one of the lower
triad cards, but now generally regarded as indicating not only solitude
…but also the accomplishment of personal goals…It’s as if the cards
are suggesting your personal goals are, at this time, due to take pri-
ority over romance. I don’t know if this makes sense to you…”

Don’t be shy about using a little scientific

8 knowledge from psychology or sociology

to deduce your clienT’s concerns.

A seasoned professional, Ian Rowland offers this advise:

“Don’t consult the musty books [on the occult and para-
normal] that you
use as props! Books on therapy and counselling are more
useful! My favorite is a bestseller written back in the 70s,
called Passages, by Gail Sheehy. The subtitle says it all:
‘Predictable Crises of Adult Life.’ ”
Other mentalists swear by demographic journals that
reveal what interests someone of a particular age,
sex, or social group will have.
For his stint as a “Psychic for a Day”
Michael Shermer used the Five Factor Model
of personality—Openness to experience,
Extroversion, Conscientiousness,
Agreeableness, and Neuroticism—
along with Frank Sulloway’s research on
family dynamics to predict, among other
things, the birth order of his subjects
(first-born, middle-born, or later-born).

SKEPTIC.com
9ddon't forget the obvious. Flatter your subj ects .
Tell them what they want to hear.
“Your romance will turn out, your financial problems
will be solved, you are hard working, fair, independent
and wise.” Sophisticated readers don’t just blurt out
these flattering statements—they weave them into
an elaborate presentation that disguises their
manipulative nature. Clients hearing generalized
statements that could be about anyone apply them to
something very specific in their own lives, and perceive
the reading as startlingly accurate.
And what if the
romance doesn’t
work out? Remember
that people have a
tendency to remember the hits
and forget the misses, especially,
if they are dealing with a lot
of information.

10 Have your excuses ready. turn every outcome to your advantage.

As mentioned earlier, admit at the start that you

are not 100% accurate.

If a client points out that the reader is wrong about

a particular statement, the reader could claim
that it was something that happened in the dis-
tant past and gently hint that it’s the subject’s
fault if they don’t remember. Or they can sug-
gest that it’s something that will happen in the
future.

Rescue a bad guess about a message from

a departed loved one by claiming the spirit in
question has had a change of heart that they would
like you to know about.

Blame awkward pauses or lack of progress on bad

spiritual connections.

Or, better yet, blame your subjects by suggesting

they need to try harder.

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